For the Pilots in recent years, this means recruiting players from outside North America. It’s not that Portland coach Eric Reveno hasn’t repeatedly tried during his seven-year tenure on the Bluff. But some doors have opened in Europe the past few years that allowed Reveno to sign two players who could have a significant impact on the Pilots' program.

Reveno believes the wealth of former Pilots playing professional basketball in Europe has brought attention to the school. Reveno says there are about a dozen UP pros in Europe, most who played for him at Portland.

Recruiting internationally is nothing new to college basketball, as most successful programs do it to varying degrees. The WCC has 22 players from outside North America on its men’s basketball rosters. Saint Mary’s has the most with six.

Portland coach Eric Reveno says former Pilots playing professional basketball in Europe has exposed his school to young playersFile

With far more informational avenues open to foreign players today, it’s becoming easier to recruit players from other continents. Reveno says he able to do a lot of personal communication with international players and parents through Skype.

Still, it’s expensive. Reveno still remembers walking into then-athletic director Larry Williams’ office during his first year, wondering how he was going to explain the $3,500 plane ticket he purchased to see Germany’s Robin Smeulders. Recruiting a foreign player often requires multiple plane trips, plus myriad travel expenses.

“I’d much rather recruit the heck out of Portland, or Seattle, but it is an opportunity you have to look at,” Reveno said.

Another obstacle to foreign recruiting is fit. The academic transcript of a foreign player can sometimes be difficult to get through the NCAA clearinghouse. Smeulders, Reveno’s first foreign signee in 2006, had to sit for a year while in Portland before he was cleared.

Foreign players don’t often visit the campus, either. Van der Mars didn’t get his first look at Portland until he enrolled for summer classes in 2011.

“I had a good feeling about it. I was more excited about coming to Portland than scared,” van der Mars said.

Reveno discovered van der Mars and Reinfelds at Canarias Basketball Academy, located on Spain's Canary Islands off the northwest coast of Africa. More than 40 Canarias players have signed Division I scholarships the past five years. Van der Mars said he enrolled at Canarias after he had no success sending videos and correspondence to Division I colleges.

Within a year at Canarias, van der Mars had multiple Division I offers. Van der Mars found he wanted to go to college, but that’s not always the case with many foreign players, who in many countries can turn professional at age 18.

Reveno has also recruited countries such as New Zealand and Australia, and says he’ll continue to push for players throughout the world.

As for the opening of WCC play, Reveno says the Pilots are probably a few wins off what he had hoped to achieve during non-league play. But the Portland coach said there’s clearly a different feel for the Pilots heading into the WCC season than a year ago.

“It felt like we were playing catch-up last year. I feel like now we’re close. We’re really defending and rebounding. We’ve proven we can defend at a high level,” Reveno said.

In the WCC, Portland ranks fourth in field goal defense, and fifth in rebounding margin. Where the Pilots are challenged is offense. Portland ranks last in the conference in scoring (63.1 points) and field goal percentage (.420). UP also turns the ball over on more than 22 percent of its possessions, second worst in the WCC.

Reveno acknowledges the offensive shortcomings, but says the Pilots “run better than we ever have, and we can make plays off the dribble.” He believes a top-five finish in league is possible if the offense improves.